


The Shop Next Door

by nightfalltwen



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-20
Updated: 2012-03-20
Packaged: 2017-11-02 06:53:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/366162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightfalltwen/pseuds/nightfalltwen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Luna's teashop and Draco's rare book shop are side by side.  It can be vexing and relaxing at any given time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Shop Next Door

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2012 Wizard_Love fest. D/L is the main pairing. The others are mere mentions. This started out being a Luna POV fic and I ended up starting over about 900 words in to make it Draco's point of view because he was being difficult and demanding more screen time. The kinks in the prompt are definitely not in their original form because the muse decided not to let me write that way. Silly Muse. Also, much creative licence has been taken with flowers and herbs used in tea. Thank you to my betas, without whom I would have suffered greatly. Special thank you to **ragdoll** for her understanding and for running the fest!  <3

***

_May_

"Good lord, Lovegood, what in the hell are you doing?"

He'd known coming over here was a mistake from the start. She was always doing something ridiculous and yet he couldn't stop himself. Despite everything, Luna Lovegood made a perfect cup of tea and Draco was loathe to admit that he still couldn't find another shop that did it better than her. Then there was the convenience. Her blasted shop with its perfect tea was right next to his rare bookshop and this was infuriating. Forcing himself to seek out another merchant would be so much easier if this place wasn't so damn easy to get to.

But back to the ridiculous.

She wasn't just sitting on the floor this time. Oh no. Lovegood was currently balanced on her head, feet in the air with her heels resting against the rough-hewn planks that made up the wall. She smiled and tried looking sideways at him without turning her head. Then she wiggled her foot at him, paying no mind to the fact that her skirt was flapping down around her stomach and her knickers were being shown off to the world.

Of all the things that Draco Malfoy didn't want to know about Luna Lovegood, it was the fact that she occasionally wore bright red knickers with ruffles on them. Ruffles! On the bum! Draco raised his eyes to the ceiling and focused on a knot in the exposed wood. He just wouldn't look at her. Wouldn't look at the ruffles or the fact that her legs were almost completely bare save for odd socks. Ruffles and odd socks. Why she didn't just wear clothes like normal people, Draco didn't know.

"Inventory," Luna said from somewhere below.

"What?" Draco's eyes dropped down to look at her and then shot back up to the ceiling. Ruffles! Damnit.

"I am surveying my inventory, Draco Malfoy," she said airily from below. "I do find this the very best way to understand if I've placed everything in the right place. You really should try this with your books. I suspect it will help you organise better."

Draco let out a derisive snort and heard her shift and saw out of his periphery that her feet lowered to the floor so she could stand up. Her hair was a mess and in desperate need of a comb. He would have said that it was worse than Granger's unruly mop, but having just witnessed _that_ monstrosity today, it was safe to say that Luna's was at least more easily tamed. She smoothed down her skirt and tilted her head at Draco. He didn't want to, but he couldn't help but notice how red her cheeks now were.

"Did you need something?" she asked, leaning forward to tug up her socks, first the grass green one and then the atrociously pink one with yellow flowers.

He was loathe to admit that they were spring-like. But he wouldn't say that aloud.

Before he could answer her question, Draco watched as she moved behind the counter and reached for a tin of black tea and another tin labeled bergamot. Pressing his lips together tightly, he fought the urge to feel somewhat pleased that he didn't have to instruct her on what he wanted. She just seemed to know. Once she had asked him about why he came to her so often, but it had caught him off guard and had made him distinctly uncomfortable. He'd actually _mumbled_ a response about how he wasn't able to get a proper Earl Grey anywhere else and hers was surprisingly well put together.

She'd not asked him anything else.

He was immensely grateful of that.

"How are sales?" she asked, pleasantly, using a spoon to measure out the tea leaves and the bits of orange peel into a mesh bag before tying it with a bit of thread as Draco took a seat at the counter. Loose leaf tea needed time and he found himself willing to allow the time it needed. "I told some of my friends about the books you have."

"I know," Draco grumbled, frowning despite the fact that he'd made a tidy sum in profit from the increase of swotty customers. "Though I would appreciate if you didn't with some of them. That way I wouldn't have to deal with Granger and her disaster of a boyfriend bumbling about and disorganising my organisation."

"Michael made a mess of your shelves? " Luna said, carefully pouring hot water over the leaves. "That doesn't sound like him. Normally he's so polite and well behaved."

Draco gave her a funny look. Michael? Maybe all that blood rushing to her head and muddled something. He took the paper cup she'd held out to him and reached for the jar of sliced lemons she kept on the counter, adding two to the hot liquid and then taking the spoon from the honey pot and adding a dollop. Yet another thing he was glad of. He'd seen her fix another customer's tea in its entirety, milk, sugar, the works, but she never did that with his. It seemed she respected the fact that he was very territorial about his tea.

"I'm talking about Weasley. The pair of them were in this morning." Draco blew on his tea before putting a lid on the cup. "The Neanderthal pulled books off my shelf and put them back out of order."

"He's not."

"A Neanderthal? I beg to differ. All he needs is the longer arms so he can drag his knuckles on the ground to complete the look." The image amused him. Perhaps he'd sketch a lovely picture of it and stick it to his front window. Complete with the improvement of dragging knuckles.

Luna shook her head and turned to put away the tea leaves and bergamot peels. "Her boyfriend. Ronald and Hermione went their separate ways a couple of years ago. Hermione's been involved with Michael Corner for a few months."

Draco went silent and this time he couldn't keep the edges of his mouth from turning up. When she turned back to him, she must have seen it because she gave him a questioning look. Draco lifted the cup to his lips and took a sip of the hot tea then brushed the front of his robes, sweeping away specks of dust that weren't there. She wouldn't stop looking at him so he shrugged.

"It's funny. I thought you would protest the caveman comparison. Weasley is an acquaintance of yours, is he not?"

Luna chuckled, a wide smile breaking across her face. "Ronald is my friend, yes. And I suppose I should be offended on his behalf at being insulted. However, he does have a tendency to be a little obtuse when it comes to the proper etiquette around books and yours are very old tomes. So I understand your frustration. I had hoped that Terry Boot would pop by. Him and Mandy Brocklehurst have always had a keen eye when it came to the value of an old book. Plus it would give you ever so much business. Your shop is often fairly quiet, is it not?"

Draco frowned. Yes, the two Ravenclaws had both been in the shop a couple of times. They'd both purchased some extremely rare books, fawning and fussing over the age of the volumes and how lucky they were to find them. Draco hated to admit that he was actually quite chuffed that they had no comment on who was running the shop or looked at him with any sort of disdain. Not like Weasley had today. Grumbling the whole time Granger had been thumbing through an old volume of Greek potion ingredients that were no longer available.

"I like quiet," he said after a moment. "And I don't need your help with my business, Lovegood."

With that, he spun on his heel and left the tea shop with his cup.

***

_August_

It was disgustingly hot. The kind of hot that wasn't affected by the best cooling charms. It was a sticky sort of hot that coated everything in a layer of sweat and stink and Draco came to the decision that if the shop was as profitable in the coming fiscal year as it had been over the last few months, he was going to close down for the month of August. Already two weeks in and it was unbearable. Perhaps he'd take a nice holiday to South America. Summer was the middle of their winter. It would be lovely and cold then, wouldn't it?

It was a little after five in the evening and the sun had set enough that the street was now shaded by the other buildings. This was the only respite for those who were brave enough to wander the Alley and for shopkeeps sitting on the steps of their shops with their sleeves rolled up as Draco was currently doing. It seemed like even those looking for new things for Hogwarts didn't want to stay long. Draco considered closing early, but there had been a few people over to look for texts. Mostly students going into seventh year and picking up the optional texts for some of the NEWT level classes. Draco had lucked out by making an arrangement with Vector and keeping a set of rare Arithmancy tomes in stock for her, winning out the contract from Flourish and Blotts. It helped that he'd been a good student and she was willing to overlook his choices during the war.

"Here you go," Luna held out a tall glass, beaded with condensation as she plopped down on the step beside him. Ice cubes clinked against the glass.

"What on earth..." Draco eyed the drink suspiciously. It was an odd red colour and there were slices of orange floating in amongst the ice cubes.

"Iced tea," she replied to his unasked question. "I've been experimenting with all my different fruit flavours to make the best one. So far they've been quite the hit and I know you don't care for anything beyond Earl Grey, but it's too terribly hot for you to be drinking that."

An odd sensation seemed to tumble about in Draco's belly. He wasn't exactly sure what it was, but it did have something to do with the fact that she thought about him and knew his preferences. It was _nice_ of her. Behind the tumble of emotion in his stomach, there was also a sick feeling. It stemmed from the war. They'd never talked about her imprisonment in his manor. He'd never offered his apologies, she'd never questioned him about it. For months they'd worked in adjacent shops and this topic had never come up. Now he wasn't sure if he should broach it.

"Lovegood...I..." Draco hesitated and used the convenient glass of iced tea to hide his discomfort, taking a large gulp. It still had hints of tea flavour, but the fruit was the most prominent and was it ever refreshing. Pressing the cold glass to the side of his neck, he looked over at her. One of the thin straps of her sundress had slipped off her shoulder. The words and memories of seventh year caught in his throat and he couldn't bring himself to speak of it. Instead he blurted out the next thing that came to mind. "Why aren't you minding your shop?"

"Oh that," Luna said, waving her hand dismissively toward her door. "Two of your Slytherin classmates were having a quiet conversation... I left them with a new iced tea blend. They seemed to be happy to be left alone."

Draco perked up slightly. "Which classmates?"

Luna's brow furrowed and she tilted her head to one side, looking back at the door. "I don't think I ever actually learnt their names. He's tall, slender, brown hair and blue eyes. Very well dressed. I'm pretty sure he was in the same year as you, but I never spoke to him..."

"Theodore Nott." Draco sipped his tea again, a smirk on his face. "Let me guess. He's with a shorter woman, brown hair and her mouth twists into a sour expression on occasion?" He twisted his lips in what he thought was a fair approximation of the frown in question.

Luna covered her mouth and he heard her giggle and wagged a long finger at him. "If I didn't know better, I'd suspect you of planting speckled warbles in my shop to spy on my customers."

Draco rolled his eyes, but didn't scowl as he might have years ago. He'd thought she'd grown out of the whole made up creatures thing years ago, but apparently she hadn't, yet it didn't seem to bother him as it once had. He sat back on the step, resting his elbows on the stone. Quite suddenly his disgustingly hot day got a little bit better. Cold drink and somewhat gossipy conversation was always good for putting one in a better mood. He found that he didn't even mind so much the company. Lovegood didn't complicate things.

It was nice to be so utterly uncomplicated with someone.

"This might be the first time they've been in public together, you know," he said, shifting so he could fish around in the glass for a slice of orange. "That is a big thing for him."

"They came in separately," Luna said and Draco noticed out of the corner of his eye that she was finally attending to that errant dress strap, pulling it back over her shoulder.

"They would."

Luna pulled up her knees and leaned forward slightly, folding her arms across them and looking over at him with a curious expression. She didn't ask or say anything. She just looked at him in a way that asked for more information. It was such an innocent expression that he found himself unable to tell her to mind her own business. He was unable to tell her to bugger off. Instead he found himself drinking more of her iced tea and shifting closer so he could speak in a quieter voice.

"Well, you see, he spent the last six months trying to convince himself he's not in love with Tracey Davis, the woman he's with, so I'm not surprised. It's new to him. And his family isn't pleased." Draco shrugged.

The Notts weren't so concerned with Tracey's family bloodlines, but that she was middle class. They were so much stricter when it came to new money versus old money and those with no money all together. Theodore would have probably written him off as a disgraced member of pureblood society had he listened to his family about the downfall of the Malfoy family fortune. But they'd been friends for so long and it seemed to Draco that Theodore was amused by the whole thing. He often referred to the bookshop as quaint. But he also bought a number of the higher priced books. And had Draco not known that Theodore was a reader, he would have thought it was charity and been thoroughly offended.

Luna turned slightly and looked back to her shop. "I imagine they wouldn't be pleased right now. They were climbing up onto one of my tables when I left the shop. I do hope they didn't leave their clothes on the floor. I haven't swept up yet... everything will get so dirty."

Draco did a double take. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Theodore Nott and Tracey Davis. They seemed very enthused... I thought it best to give them some privacy."

"They're shagging? On a table in your shop?"

"I do think that was where it was headed."

Draco gave the shop door a glance. At least she'd had the good sense to turn her sign around to say 'closed' and he noticed that she'd drawn the curtains. He was a mixture of both puzzled and shocked. Theodore wasn't one for public displays. At least not of this nature. Sure the bloke maybe had a thing for the potential of being caught, but he wasn't the kind of man to just shag a woman on a table in a teashop. Maybe he would talk about it and make wry comments about it, but he never thought that Theodore was the type to carry through and actually proceed with the whole thing.

"You're a strange person, Lovegood," Draco said with a sigh, pushing himself up off the step. He debated for a moment and then held his hand out to her to help her to stand. She looked at it curiously for a beat and Draco almost dropped it away, withdrawing the invitation, but then she took it and stood. "I just don't understand how you can allow something like that..."

"They seemed very insistent. Who am I to stand in the way of someone else's desires?" Luna said, smoothing out her skirt and giving him a smile. "And it was all very sudden. I didn't have much time to protest."

Draco didn't know what to say. There was a small part of him that wanted to inquire more. To ask what exactly had happened. Theodore was his friend and if he was going to make a fool of himself in public, Draco wanted to know how best to handle the situation. Part of him was just confused. It seemed so strange and if he didn't know any better, he would have sworn this was the result of a love potion. But Luna wasn't the sort of person to do such a thing to another. She was smart enough, mind you, but she wasn't mean or devious that way.

Something didn't sit well with him. He knew that much at least.

"I haven't locked the door," Luna said, taking her wand out of a thin pocket at the seam of her dress. In an instant there was a little basket flying towards her, which she caught. "So you won't need to worry about letting them out. I do need to go pick up some supplies and post a letter."

"Alright," Draco said and before he could shake his head and tell her it wasn't his job to watch her shop, she was walking away from him, down the alley, her skirt swirling about her knees with every step she took.

***

_October_

Blind. He was going to be blind after this. There was no question about it. Though perhaps it wasn't so much that Draco had suffered any sort of physical injury. But he was certain that he was going to go blind regardless.

The day had started out fairly decent. Sales had slowed recently due to students being in school and a sheer lack of people really all that interested in rare books. This day, however, he'd had a number of owl orders come in from overseas and with the post had come a shipment of new stock for his shelves. Once he'd unpacked the books and put them away, Draco had taken the empty boxes out to the cardboard bin behind his shop. And that's when he came across the horrifying scene that would be the basis for him going blind.

One Ronald Weasley and one Lavender Brown caught in flagrante delicto.

Draco didn't even realising what he was looking at it for the first moment. So much white skin and freckles and red hair and blond hair. And thrusting. There had been _thrusting_! It was horrifying. Alright. Brown was a bit of a looker if you were into the curvy, Rubens type. Draco could appreciate that, but he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He couldn't believe that they were doing _that_. Behind _his_ shop. When he snapped himself out of that horrifying trance, Draco threw his cardboard boxes at them and fled.

Whether or not the boxes were even noticed, Draco didn't know. He didn't stick around to find out.

"Lovegood!" he shouted, pushing open the back door to Luna's tea shop.

Stalking in, Draco pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes for a moment before looking for the Ravenclaw. The shop was empty of patrons. It seemed like Brown and Weasley had been the last patrons for the evening because spells were floating dishes to the back room and chairs were levitating up to sit on the tabletops. Draco rubbed the back of his neck and frowned, thinking that maybe Luna set these spells to run automatically after she left. But the unlocked back door told him she had to still be around.

"Lovegood?"

There was a rustle behind the counter and he walked over, peering over the edge. She sat on the floor with her arms around her knees and didn't look up at him. There was something strange about the way she was curled up. And then he saw the small shudder of her shoulders. Now this made him almost forget what he'd come in for and Draco felt his anger deflate like a popped balloon.

"Luna," he lowered his voice and came around the back of the counter to crouch down beside her. It didn't even register that he'd switched from her last name to her first name. "Are you crying?"

She didn't move for a long moment and then suddenly, Luna turned and flung her arms around him. The surprising movement caused Draco to fall back onto his arse with a soft thump and instead of pushing her back, his arms came around her shoulders and he patted her back. Crying girls were such a weakness for him. Pansy had gotten away with so many things just by crying. It would always be his downfall. He wasn't, however, annoyed at Luna for crying as he was often annoyed at Pansy for using it as a weapon. He found himself genuinely concerned. Had Weasley and Brown done something?

And why did he feel like if they had, he'd go back out there and do more than just throw boxes at them?

"Oh Draco," she sobbed. "I don't know what's happening. It was all very pleasant and I poured them a drink and then they were grabbing at each other and I think I might be doing something very bad but I don't know what it could be. It isn't the sort of thing that people do in public, is it?"

"Hold up," Draco said with a frown. "Why on earth would you think that you're doing something bad. You're quite possibly the least bad person I know. And I know a lot of bad people."

"You must have seen..." she said in a hushed voice. "Ronald and Lavender... "

Draco grimaced. "Yes. I did happen to come across that little eyesore."

Luna started crying again. Draco could feel the front of his button up start to moisten and he was beginning to feel a bit awkward and maybe a little uncomfortable, but he did his best to pat her back and console her. When her sobs petered off into quiet hiccups, Draco felt a little more relaxed. Hiccups he could deal with. Sobbing, not so much. Finally, after what seemed like absolutely forever, Luna lifted her head and looked at him with red-rimmed eyes and a pink nose. Before he knew what he was doing, Draco had pulled out a handkerchief and began gently wiping her cheeks.

A thought bubbled up to the surface and he tilted his head. "What happened that made you think that you did something to encourage that?" he asked, gesturing vaguely toward the door that led out back.

Luna looked dismayed and bit the edge of her lip, her eyes dropping to stare at the floor. "I think it's my tea. I've been trying for ages to figure it out. Your friends... they were the first. But there have been others before Ronald and Lavender. At first I thought it was Nargles. You know how they are. Always causing trouble, but they're more prone to hiding in mistletoe and I haven't used any of that in my tea. It being poisonous and all."

"Well it couldn't possibly be your tea," Draco said with certainty. "I drink your tea and at no time have I ever considered climbing onto a table with any of the girls who come into my shop."

He got to his feet and held out a hand to Luna, pulling her up as well. Crying wasn't going to solve the situation so they couldn't just sit there all day. It really did need to be solved as well. Draco didn't want to run across other people shagging out beside the cardboard bin. Once was bad enough. He wasn't sure he was ever going to forget that image unless he obliviated himself and that sort of self-medicating wasn't exactly the smartest thing to do because so many things could go wrong. In any case, he needed to stop thinking about _them_ and focus on what was in front of him.

"Did they eat anything?" he asked after a moment.

She nodded and pointed to a cake under a glass cover. "Just a slice of the Victoria Sponge I made today."

"Do you mind if I take it and see if maybe I can have someone look at it to see if there's something amiss with the recipe?"

She stared at the cake for a long moment and Draco thought that her mind had wandered off. He was about to reach out and give her shoulder a light shake when she turned to face him. "You would do that for me?"

Draco rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Technically I'm doing it for me. Stumbling across people shagging in the space behind our shops is an unpleasant experience that I don't care to repeat."

Luna boxed up the cake and brought it over to him. She held it out and when he took it, she surprised him by leaning across and pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. Her lips were cool and as quickly as it had happened, she pulled back and it was over. Draco felt his skin grow hot and he cleared his throat. His gaze settled on a spot just over her shoulder as he tried willing the redness to go away.

"Thank you," she said.

"Yes. Well. It's not a problem. And I know an expert who might be able to help me." He turned abruptly and walked out of the shop, desperately ignoring the strange clenching feeling in his stomach.

***

"So you saw them? Shagging?" Pansy pulled a face and prodded the sponge cake with her wand. "How awful."

Draco had owled Pansy the moment he'd gotten to his shop, tempting her with the mystery of figuring out what was going on with the cake. She'd arrived an hour later with an array of beakers and potions which she'd spread all over his front counter. So far they'd discovered nothing entirely special other than the cake had a calorie count that was far outside something Pansy would ever consider. The conversation circled around what Draco had seen in the Alley, something he was trying hard to forget, and what could have caused it.

Not that he enjoyed theorising about Weasley's sexual habits. But it was still very odd.

Pansy started flicking her wand at different beakers, making the contents vanish. "It's not the cake, Draco. It has to be the tea that Loony's serving her customers," she said pursing her lips.

"It can't be the tea. I drink the tea and you don't see me going around shagging people in public."

Pansy rolled her eyes at him. "Draco, dear, I'm afraid to say that you drink _boring_ tea and you don't experiment outside of your comfort zone."

Pulling out his wand, Draco summoned a plate and a fork from the flat upstairs. He gave Pansy a dark look and then cut a piece of the sponge with the side of his fork, scooping it onto the plate. "I'm going to try it anyway. If I come at you, you can always stun me into submission."

She laughed. "Is that a promise?"

Draco ignored her and took a bite. Then waited. A few minutes passed and there was no change in his desire for Pansy. Sure she was still as pretty as she'd been in school, but he had no designs on her. No uncontrollable urge to toss her across the countertop and have his way with her. Setting down the plate, he heaved a sigh and leaned back against the counter. This was getting him nowhere. Perhaps Weasley and Brown were just uncouth miscreants. That didn't explain the thing with Theodore in the summertime, but he couldn't think of another reason.

"Maybe I'm immune."

"Or maybe it's the tea," Pansy shook her head, dark hair swinging back and forth. "Oh just stay here, for heaven's sake. Sometimes you can be so impossible."

She turned on her heel and left his shop. Draco looked warily at the sponge for a moment and then packed it back up in the box that Luna had put it. Hopefully she wouldn't mind the odd piece that was missing. He did try to be as careful as he could and not destroy the thing. After that he waited for Pansy to return. Twenty minutes passed before that happened and she came back with three glasses of varying colours which she set down in front of him.

"She makes a lot of her herbal teas with hibiscus," Pansy said, pulling up a chair. "Have you read the recent journal publications in Potions about hibiscus and how it changes as it ages?"

Draco's stomach did a bit of a sink. He used to be so involved with potions. It had been one of his favourite classes and he'd pondered taking up his Mastery once he'd finished school. Of course that was before sixth year. That was before the shite hit the proverbial fan. He'd distanced himself from everything that he'd come to associate with being a good Slytherin. Pansy, on the other hand, had continued. She'd studied hard and was one of the youngest Potions Mistresses in Britain. This, however, meant that he was not as up to date on breakthrough research. Pansy, however, was. And she certainly did like one-up him with that fact.

"Let me guess. It can cause people to lose control of themselves," he said dryly.

"Yes. And no." Pansy pushed one of the cups toward him. "It's a relatively new study. Hibiscus isn't used in a lot of European recipes as it's strictly a new world ingredient and heaven knows that Europe is still very old world. Some of the research says that, when brewed, it causes one to stop fighting a particular urge. Other research says that it can take on the emotions of the person handling it. So either that cup there is going to make you lose all control, something that would be very amusing to see in one Draco Malfoy, or it's something that Loony's been feeling while brewing it and you're going to feel it too. I, for one, would like to test this."

She smirked. "For science, of course."

"Of course. " Draco scowled and looked at the cup, not knowing why he had to be the guinea pig, but he picked up the cup that she'd nudged closer and looked down at it. The tea inside was a peculiar shade of red and he could see the leaves floating about near the bottom of the cup, having settled there. With a sigh, he took a large swallow and closed his eyes. After a moment he opened them and looked at his childhood friend seated across from him.

And nothing.

"Sorry..." Draco's shoulders slumped in relief. "But I still don't have the urge to ravish you."

"Try the others." Pansy pushed the other two cups, one a thin sort of golden colour and the other was a pink.

He tried them both. Still nothing. This time it was Pansy's turn to furrow her brow in confusion and in a small way Draco felt a bit satisfied at the fact that she'd been wrong. Not that he'd ever tell her this because that would just result in a row and at least three weeks of her not speaking to him. Draco glanced at the sponge cake in its box and the mostly empty glasses and thought it was probably best if he returned those before Luna closed up shop.

"I suppose it just doesn't work on you," Pansy said, gathering up her cloak and her potions bottles. "Tell Loony to get a fresher batch of hibiscus and to not keep it longer than a fortnight before replacing it and everything should calm down."

With that. She left Draco sitting on the chair still thinking about cake and tea cups. "Hibiscus. Yes," he replied to empty air.

***

It took about thirty minutes for Draco to realise that he hadn't moved from his chair and that he still needed to return things to the shop next door. Taking out his wand he waved it and set cleaning spells and closing up spells in motion so that his own shop would take care of itself and then gathered up the boxed cake and the dirty cups, leaving everything else to finish up behind him. He turned the sign on the door to 'closed' and locked the door behind him.

Luna was standing behind the counter, wiping it with a large cloth. He was surprised to see her there because everything had been in the process of closing up when he'd spoken to her last. But he managed a smile and placed the box and cups down on a spot that she'd not wiped. She gave him a small smile and sent the cups off toward the back room where he assumed they'd be washed.

He'd meant to tell her something about the hibiscus. It was right at the front of his mind as he'd left his shop.

But now he wasn't so sure what it was that he was supposed to have said. Not that it mattered, he thought as he came around the counter. Something else mattered. Something else entirely. It was like he was watching it from the outside and yet not horrified about it, but cheering himself on. She didn't say anything to him, nor did he say anything to her.

The next thing Draco knew was that he'd drawn her into his arms and he was kissing her. Those cool lips he'd felt against his cheek before were now pressed against his mouth. At first she didn't move and for some reason he thought that perhaps he should say something, but then her arms came about his shoulders and she started kissing him back. Oh. Oh if he'd _known_ that this was how it was going to be, he would have kissed her ages ago. Maybe on that hot summer day when her sundress strap was falling off her shoulder or when she was standing on her head counting her inventory.

Kissing Luna was different than kissing anyone else. Not that he'd had a lot of experience kissing other women. Just Pansy and maybe a couple of other Slytherin girls when Pansy wasn't looking. Suddenly his blood was roaring in his ears and everything felt urgent. His hands bunched up the back of her blouse and he tried to say something, but her lips were there and her tongue and he was losing himself in all of it. In all of her. Why hadn't he wanted this before? Why hadn't he tried?

Those two questions were like cold water splashed over his head and Draco tore himself away, almost shoving himself back from her.

"I'm sorry..." he panted, fighting every fiber in his being that was screaming to gather her back into his arms and do so much more than kiss her. "It's the tea," he choked out. "I drank... you have to keep your hibiscus fresh... this shouldn't have..."

Luna looked at him, her lips swollen and her blouse a bit askew. He could see the strap of her bra from the open neckline that had been pushed to the side and by god he wanted to push the whole thing off and see so much more. Closing his hand into a fist, he hit himself in the thigh. He felt like he was going mad, but forcing himself on her just because he was under the influence of some kind of potion ingredient. It wasn't right.

Before she could respond, because he couldn't bear to hear her talk, worried that he would be unable to stop himself, Draco fled the shop.

***

_November_

Draco spent the next two weeks avoiding the teashop like the plague. He was embarrassed for his behaviour. Embarrassed that he'd not been able to control himself and embarrassed that he didn't know how to apologise for how he'd behaved. Three letters sat, unsent, on his table upstairs and twice he'd found himself standing in front of Luna's shop with his hand on the doorknob ready to go in and get a cuppa and talk with her and both times he'd retreated back to his own shop. He was miserable. And every time he saw her pass by, she looked just as miserable.

And why not? He'd acted like a complete boor and then not even said he was sorry. Well. He'd said he was sorry, but that wasn't a full apology.

The worst part about all of it was that he couldn't get the kiss out of his head. How pliable her mouth had been, how warm her arms had been when they wrapped around his shoulders, how her chest had heaved with heavy breaths after he'd torn himself away. All of it stuck in his head and played on repeat like some sort of maddening torture device. A big part of him wanted to see if it had all been real, but a small part of him kept repeating that it all had to do with some silly flower and he was just under the influence. 

Like being drunk.

With a frown Draco stabbed his quill at the ledger he was balancing just as the bell above his door tinkled. Outside it was raining as only a November day in London could rain. The sound was a brief deafening thrum before the door closed again. Draco set aside his paperwork and wiped a smudge of ink off his finger before coming out into the main part of the shop.

He started back. "Luna."

"Hello, Draco," she said, walking forward and setting down a paper cup on his counter. "It's cold out. I've brought you something warm to drink."

"Ah. Thank you," he said awkwardly.

"I've also locked your door and turned your sign." She undid the button of her cloak and took it off, draping it over his counter. "I'd like to talk."

Draco took a step back and fiddled with a button on his shirt. "Yes. I suppose we ought to talk. I just didn't have the right thing to say. I am truly sorry for my beha--"

He would have finished that sentence if she'd not placed her hand against his mouth and shook her head. Draco felt his knees tremble just a little. Her fingertips smelt like lemons and honey and bergamot peels. It might have been boring, but it was still his favourite way of taking tea and she smelt exactly like it. Oh lord, he was in so much trouble.

"Hibiscus," she said. "Is a calming sort of flower. It's meant to carry away all your stresses so that you don't focus on holding up every single barrier. When aged, hibiscus can cause a stronger reaction of letting go of barriers. You might not even know that there was something you wanted until all the parts of you that said no were taken away." Slowly she lowered her hand. "I did a little reading after you left. Some of the studies on the potency of hibiscus are quite informative."

"I forced myself on you," Draco blurted out, not knowing what else to say and thinking this was just as, if not more, worse than when she'd been trapped in his house.

"Yes." Luna reached up and pushed some of his hair off his face. "But if you kissed me now, it wouldn't be forcing."

"You should hate me," he said quietly. "After what was done to you during the war... after what I..."

"I don't." Luna offered him a smile and it was like sunshine and her fingers were on his cheek. Her words were so resolute. Just two of them. She didn't have to say things like she forgave him. She didn't have to make a big speech about it. It was just simple and clean. It meant more to him than he could say.

This time when Draco kissed her, it was different. He gathered her into his arms and when his lips touched hers, warmth spread everywhere. Luna gave a little gasp. He felt her fingers thread into his hair, her nails scraping very lightly over his scalp. His fingers bunched again in her blouse, but instead of tugging it like a madman, he simply flexed his fingertips and held her close. To his surprise though, he felt the tip of her tongue dart out against his lip. Draco lifted his head for a moment and looked at her, searching her eyes. They glinted mischievously at him just before she slid one hand to the back of his neck and tugged him down.

Hungry had never been a word he would have associated with Luna Lovegood, but this kiss was just that. Her teeth caught his lip, which elicited a groan in the back of his throat. It was very possible, almost certain, that he wanted her more now than when he'd been prompted by that blasted tea. She was warm and soft and pliable against him.

Suddenly her cool fingers were sliding over his bare chest and Draco pulled back, surprised, breaking off the kiss. He looked down and realised that she'd undone his shirt. Her palm was pressed against the middle of his chest, fingertips brushing lightly over the scars there. He drew in a shaking breath. Draco didn't show his scars to just anyone. He watched her carefully as she dropped her gaze down to look at them, a single finger tracing the outline of each ragged mark.

"You don't have to," he said quietly.

She leaned forward and placed her lips against the largest of the scars before looking up at him. "Haven't you figured it out yet?" she asked with that amazing sunshiny smile.

He reached up and ran his fingertips through the waves of hair at the crown of her head. "I might be cottoning on. It helps that you're being quite forward."

"I'd like you to take me up to your bed," she said kissing his chest. "Was that forward enough for you?"

"Yes, I think I get the idea," he said, unable to hold back a laugh and put his arms around her, apparating the both of them to his room.

If someone had come to him months ago and said that he would be standing in the middle of his room with his arms around Luna Lovegood, he wouldn't have believed them. He wouldn't have believed that he would be undressing her and himself. He wouldn't have believed that he would be laying her back on his bed and that he'd be kissing her shoulder and looking down at her and seeing that she was more than just this loopy sort of person who ran a teashop next to his bookshop. They were two entirely different sorts of people and yet there was nowhere else that he would rather be.

Draco pressed his lips to her neck and slowly began to trace them down the column of her throat until he reached her collar bone. He could feel her fingertips tracing his earlobes and then the back of his neck. She touched him in different ways than he would have thought, finding his hand and brushing her thumb over the spaces between his fingers. She smiled at him and it warmed him from the inside out, causing him to smile back, dip his head and kiss the space between her breasts. Her soft sigh urged him on and he kissed his way to her nipple, catching it between his teeth and worrying it until she whimpered, then he let go and began moving down her body.

"What made you want this?" he asked, murmuring against the soft skin of her abdomen. He glanced up at her, still surprised at how this came to be. "After all that happened... what made you want me?"

"Mmm... The past is past..." Luna sighed and combed her fingers through his hair. "The present is who you are. The past is who you were. Your future is without blemish."

Draco rested his chin by her navel and looked up at her. "That doesn't exactly answer my question."

Luna smiled. "Would it help if I said you were fit?"

"I suppose it might."

He chuckled and kissed her hipbone before surging up and capturing her mouth in a demanding kiss that left both of them breathless. His hand slid up between her legs and pushed her thighs apart, fingertips running lightly over her heated flesh and slipping against her clit. She rewarded him by letting out a quiet sound and rolling her hips toward his hand. He would have kept control if that was all she had done, but his eyes flew open when he felt her hand close around his erection, giving it a slow stroke, then two, then three.

"You're sure this isn't tea-related?" he groaned, settling between her thighs, kissing her.

"I'm sure." Luna lifted one leg and hooked it over his hip, looking up at him with dark eyes. "I can't speak for nargles though..."

Draco groaned as she spoke and slid inside her. "Might be starting to like those nargles if this is what they help out with."

It was Luna's turn to laugh and her other leg came around his hip, pulling him against her. The sensation nearly knocked him off his feet, or would have had he been on his feet. He couldn't even describe what it was like because it wasn't like anything he'd ever experienced. Sex had never been this... this playful. Her fingers danced everywhere. All over his back, his chest and his sides, causing him to laugh and squirm, sometimes breaking the rhythm of his movements. Her hips rose and fell in time with his and she kept her eyes open, watching him. And that smile. That _smile_. No one smiled at him like Luna smiled at him.

It made his heart pound.

He touched her everywhere, just as she touched him. He ran his fingers down her ribs and when she squirmed it changed the angle of her hips. Her eyes widened and she sucked in a breath, her mouth forming an "o" shape. Draco felt the corner of his mouth turn up, almost in a smirk, because he'd found something to surprise her with. Then sliding his hand between their moving bodies in order to rub over that sensitive bundle of nerves, he found that he surprised her even more. The sudden keening sound that burst from her throat as her whole body arched against his catapulted him to the edge.

At some point it did finally end. The shaking. The quivering. It all slowly ebbed to this soft warm afterglow.

Draco rolled onto his side and faced her, reaching out to comb back the long strands of damp hair sticking to her cheek. This woman lying beside him was someone he'd never considered before. He never would have considered her, had she not been part of his every day. Somehow he knew that it wasn't just the tea. She was attractive. She'd always been lovely and she'd always treated him as a friend. Perhaps that was what had drawn him back over and over again.

"Stay?" he asked.

Luna looked at him and turned onto her side. "I didn't have any plans to go anywhere else." She shifted closer to him and rested her head against his shoulder. "Though I thought perhaps we might try my bed on occasion."

Draco curled his arm around her and leaned over, pressing his lips to her forehead, feeling like things were definitely changing and in a very good way. "I think I might like that. I might like that quite a bit."


End file.
